Cardboard and like toys



' T. MATHEWS.

CARDBOARD AND LlKE TOY APPLICATIO N HLED JULY 15,1920.

Patented Jan. 17, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

T. MATHEWS.

CARDBOARD AND LIKE TOY.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 15,1920.

Patented Jan. 17, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

THOMAS MATHEWS, OF LEICESTER, ENGLAND; ANNIE LEATHEWS AND HENRY BUOKINGHAM EXECUTOR-S OF SAID THOMAS MATHEWS, DECEASED.

CARDBOARD AND LIKE roars.

Application filed July 15,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS MATHEWS, subject of the King of Great Britain, re siding at Leicester, in the county of Leicester, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvement in or Relating to Cardboard and like Toys, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to toys and is particularly though not exclusively applicable to those made out of cardboard or similar light material.

The invention refers to toys in imitation of human figures, and the present improvement comprehends as its chief object the production of a puppet in cardboard embodying the characteristics of the puppet which most ventriloquists employ as an essential accessory to their performances, and as will be obvious, the invention is particularly adapted for use by young children.

The invention includes a puppet in cardboard or the like fashioned and printed to represent a human being, say a boy for example, and the improvement is particularly directed to the mouth and eyes.

It is a specific and important feature of the invention to provide the puppet with a movable mouth and eyes connected to a finger piece at the back of the figure which can be actuated by the finger or thumb of the manipulator to effect movement of the mouth and eyes and vary the facial expression of the puppet.

In particularly describing the invention reference will be made to the accompanying drawings wherein a cardboard toy constituting a practical example of the invention is illustrated.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a front view of the toy.

Figure 2 is a back view, and

Figure 3 is a side view of the same.

Figure 4 is a perspective rear view of the upper part of the toy drawn to a larger scale.

Figure 5 is a front view of the movable member detached from the toy.

Throughout the drawings like parts are designated by the same reference characters.

In the illustrated example the toy com- Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Jan, 17, 1922,

1920. Serial No. 396,497;

and feet and leg members 3 of cardboard.

The material. 2 is secured to the parts 1 and by adhesive and enables the figure to be placed in a sitting attitude (such as on a table or theoperators knee) with the legs suspended in imitation of a ventriloquists puppet. I

Formed in the part 1 are openings at and 5 (Figure l) for the mouth and eyes respectively, and at the back of said part is a movable member 6 (Figures 2, 3 and 4) upon the front of which, as indicated in Figure 5, a part of the mouth viz., the chin and lower lip and teeth, and also the eye pupils are portrayed.

This movable member 6 has formed init a central vertical slot 7 which fits upon a shorter projecting piece 8 (Figures 2 and at) fixed upon the back of the part 1 the member 6 being kept in place upon the piece 8 by a cover 9 secured to the piece'S and extending over the back 'of the member 6. As shown in Figure3 the member 6 is situated between the part 1 and the cover 9, it being understood that the said member is so fitted upon the piece 8 as to be capable of free movement up and down thereon said piece serving as a guide for the member. The ends of the slot '7 by contact with the ends of the piece 8 limit the movements of the member 6.

Conveniently the movable member 6 has two sets of eye pupils in different relative other i. e. the lower set of pupils come into a central position behind the openings 5. Thus by manipulating the slidable member 6 the mouth is given the appearance of opening and closing, as in talking, and at the same time the eye pupils appear to move sideways which combined movements produce a realistic change of expression.

Attached to the movable member 6 is agripped upon opposite sides, points 13 are provided.

The finger piece 10 and holder 12 are scored or hinged at the corners so that they can fold and be, pressed flat to the back of the figure for packing purposes. To keep the lower part of the member 6 close up to the back 0 the figure, a piece of card-board 14 is fixed 'so as to extend upwards over the said member as shown in Figures 3 and 4. The member 6 Works underneath this piece 14. y

In using the toy the figure is held by gripping the rnember 12 upon opposite sides by the thumb and second finger while the member 6 operated by the forefinger inserted in the hole 11, is moved as aforesaid to effect the variations of the expression as ma be required.

he ,parts 1, 3 and 6, are painted or printed on the front in an appropriate manner to represent the desired features and other parts of the individual. The invention may be similarly applied to representa tions of animals, birds, and the like. In the example illustrated, the complete toy is, with the exception of the thighs 2, made of cardboard.

What I claim then is V 1. A puppet toy comprising a flat figure having eye and mouth openings therein, a

guide on the back of said figure, a flat member slidable on said guide and having eyes and a mouth thereon for exhibition behind said openings, a projecting finger piece on said member for operating the same, andv a projecting holding piece on the back of the figure by which the latter may be held, said finger piece and holding piece being constructed to fold to a flat condition.

2. A puppet toy comprising a flat cut out figure having eye and mouth openings therein, a guide on the baclrot said figure, a flat member slidable vertically on said guide and having eyes and a mouth thereon for exhibition behind said openings, a cover at tachcd to said guide and overlapping the slidable member to retain the latter in position on the guide, a :lFour-sided hinged struc .ture on the back of the slidable member,

said structure having a hole therein for the insertion of the operators finger, a' nd a four-sided hinged structure on the back of the figure adjacent the aforesaid structure and adapted to be held by the thumb and fingers for carrying the toy during use.

In testimony whereof I my signature in presence of two Witnesses. V

THOMAS MATHEWS. \Vitnesses:

R. W. C. TAYLOR, GEORGE Lnsrnn. 

